Charging battery from the camera - good or bad?

[Engel07]

Hello,

Should I buy a separate battery charger instead of charging the battery while it's in the camera? Any advantage or disadvantage by charging the battery in a charger vs. the camera?

thanks,

[marcel wouters]

G3 canon battery is of the LI-ion type. These battery doesn't have a memory effect, so you could charge them at any time without any problem!
I have 2 batteries and to avoid any extra hardware i charge thru the camera.

[sdommin]

Engel07 wrote:
Should I buy a separate battery charger instead of charging the battery while it's in the camera? Any advantage or disadvantage by charging the battery in a charger vs. the camera?


I think the in-camera charging feature is one of the best things about the G3. It works just fine, and who needs to carry around a charger when you're traveling? I just got back from a trip to Hawaii (1480 exposures) where I would shoot all day on one charge, then charge the battery overnight. Worked out great.

[rangersvtsplash]

me even got a in car invertor to charge the batteries i use :)

luis

[Engel07]

Thanks for the information everyone! Since the camera is going to be my big investment, I wanted to make sure I"m charging the battery correctly. I thought maybe if I charge it from the camera, the camera lifespan decrease in the long run.

[Dana]

The main reasons to get an external charger, IMHO, would be convenience and speed. At about $60 it's not that significant of an investment, so I got the Lenmar Mach1.

They aren't inherently better than the G3 for charging as far as I know. I did see a post from someone who claimed that the Lenmar Mach1 charger "saved" a battery that wasn't charging properly in the G3 any more, but I've never hear any other claims of that nature.

Convenience becuase you can charge batteries while using the camera (assuming you've bought spares). I have had a couple of situations when that was helpful. Also, it comes w/adapters to charge other batteries, so I can charge my Sony camcorder battery with it, which reduces the clutter I take on vacation.

Speed because chargers like the Lenmar Mach1 provide a full charge faster than using the camera will. So when I've run down a couple of batteries in a single day of intensive shooting (multiple little league games), I can get both of them recharged quickly w/out tying the camera down. I HATE having dead batteries and risking missing "the" shot. :-)

Dana

[RedShoesGirl]

Because I am on the road a lot and never know when or where I might charge a battery, I bought the external charger for $30 from greenbatteries.com http://store.yahoo.com/greenbatteries-store/liionbatchar.html

Works well!

lara

[taltalita]

I bought on ebay charger + TWO batteries for $50, they all work GREAT. Also, in fact, the charger + its adapter are actually LIGHTER than the canon adapter for charging from the camera, so it's easier to take the charger on a trip... :)

[IanC]

I have recently ordered a Hahnel digital power station with a BP511 battery from a UK online dealer for 57 pounds (Pricey??). It is compact in size and there are no cables to cart around however you will still need interchangeable mains plugs (for worldwide use).
A reveiw is found in the following link http://www.ephotozine.com/equipment/tests/testdetail.cfm/test_id/164/prodselect/25

[GregDallas]

taltalita wrote:
I bought on ebay charger + TWO batteries for $50, they all work GREAT. Also, in fact, the charger + its adapter are actually LIGHTER than the canon adapter for charging from the camera, so it's easier to take the charger on a trip... :)

I bought that same one and love it so far. 3 batteries (2 in that kit + 1 with the camera) and the little charger is super light and small. It's in my backpack heading to Europe for a month in 2 weeks.

[Engel07]

What's the name brand of the charger and battery?

taltalita wrote:
I bought on ebay charger + TWO batteries for $50, they all work GREAT. Also, in fact, the charger + its adapter are actually LIGHTER than the canon adapter for charging from the camera, so it's easier to take the charger on a trip... :)

[nikee]

I bought some days ago as well a charger and two batteries (after-market), one battery (Keiser Electronics, apparently a good brand) costs about 42 € and its plastic cover must come from the same factory that delivers to Canon.

The charger (64 €) comes with an AC adaptor and Car adaptor (very useful). You can charge about any digital consumer battery with this thing, it's unbelievable (at least 50 different battery types from various manufacturers). It is very light (about 100gr only) and uses very little space (a plus on travel).

the shop: http://shop.oege-energy.info

They deliver to EU (and Switzerland, as in my case, of course too, even if we are not part of the EU :)

regards
nikee

[Freeflyer]

I bought a separate charger (mugen power $25) because it was much, much lighter than the canon. I used it while trekking in Nepal, and couldn't be sure that the power was not spiking etc. Felt more comfortable about not having the power going through the camera.

Did i mention it was much lighter.

Also, I could leave a battery charging somewhere that I wouldn't want to leave the camera on it's own. I could also keep taking pictures in the villages while the other batteries were charging.

I think it all depends on your needs. If you don't need the things I needed, don't spend the extra money. If you do, then you'll value the extra abilities.

Did I mention it was much lighter.

After trekking 300 miles, every pound makes a huge difference. :-)

J.

[CowboyPoetWannabe]

freeflyer wrote:
I bought a separate charger (mugen power $25) because it was much, much lighter than the canon.
I can't find this brand of charger. Can you please elaborate? I find the battery by Mugen Power but not the charger.

taltalita wrote:
I bought on ebay charger + TWO batteries for $50, they all work GREAT. Also, in fact, the charger + its adapter are actually LIGHTER than the canon adapter for charging from the camera, so it's easier to take the charger on a trip... :)
Who was the seller?

Remember also eForcemarket and eForcity (same company I think), both on eBay, have really good prices on generic BP-511 batteries, but they only ship to USA and Canada.

-CPW

[Doug in Alaska]

Hey Barry,

My wife just bought the Mugen battery and charger for me for my birthday. Check out this link: http://www.batteryville.com/catalog/catalog.cgi?action=search&title=BP511%20Accessories&text=BP511

Good luck,
Doug

[Engel07]

All,

Is it okay to buy non-OEM battery (generic) ones? I have seen them on Ebay for like 10.00 USD. Is it going to damage the camera or anything?

[nikee]

Engel07 wrote:
Is it okay to buy non-OEM battery (generic) ones? I have seen them on Ebay for like 10.00 USD. Is it going to damage the camera or anything?

hm, I'd be careful with batteries as cheap as those. better look out for realistic prices (around 50€).

regards
nikee

[yrudd]

Folks, I think this is the item mentioned.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2936321622&category=15072
Yaakov

[Dana]

nikee wrote:
Engel07 wrote:
Is it okay to buy non-OEM battery (generic) ones? I have seen them on Ebay for like 10.00 USD. Is it going to damage the camera or anything?

hm, I'd be careful with batteries as cheap as those. better look out for realistic prices (around 50€).

regards
nikee

Been using them (eforcity) for a couple of months, no problems.

Dana

[marcel wouters]

Are those batteries li-ion also?

[Dana]

marcel wouters wrote:
Are those batteries li-ion also?

Yes. 1200 mah.

No problems to date, seem to hold the same charge as the Canon (though I've done no scientific tests).

Dana

[Engel07]

All,

I decided to go w/ Lenmar products.

I bought a batter charger, Lenmar Mach1 (model MSC-1L) a new model, from http://www.avstreet.com/ for like $44.00.

http://www.avstreet.com/msc-1l.html

It's an excellent price. I recommend this shop via internet. Also, they have great service when I ordered from them through their toll free 800 number.